Indo-Pacific Journal of Phenomenology: Most Recent Articleshttp://journals.co.za/content/journal/ipjp?TRACK=RSS
Please follow the links to view the content.Doing it differently : engaging interview participants with imaginative variationhttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1-2/EJC196494?TRACK=RSS
<div><p>The phenomenological technique of imaginative variation was identified by Husserl (1936/1970) as conducive to elucidating the manner in which phenomena appear to consciousness. In brief, by engaging in the phenomenological reduction and using imaginative variation, phenomenologists are able to describe the experience of consciousness, having stepped outside of the natural attitude through the epoché. Imaginative variation is a stage aimed at explicating the structures of experience more distinctively, and is best described as a mental experiment. Features of the experience are imaginatively altered in order to view the phenomenon under investigation from varying perspectives. Husserl envisaged this process as ultimately definitive of the essential elements of an experience, as only those aspects that are invariant to the experience of the phenomenon will not be able to change through the variation.
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Often in qualitative research interviews, participants struggle to articulate or verbalise their experiences. The purpose of this paper is to present a radically novel way of using imaginative variation as an interview technique by engaging the participants in imaginative variation in order to elicit a richly detailed and insightful experiential account of a phenomenon. We will discuss how the first author successfully used imaginative variation in this way in her study of the erotic experience of bondage, discipline, dominance and submission, and sadism and masochism (BDSM), before considering the usefulness of this technique when applied to areas of study beyond human sexuality.</p></div>Sat, 01 Oct 2016 00:00:00 GMThttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1-2/EJC196494?TRACK=RSSEmma L. Turley, Surya Monro and Nigel King2016-10-01T00:00:00ZImages of psychoanalysis : a phenomenological study of medical students' sense of psychoanalysis before and after a four-week elective coursehttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1-2/EJC196495?TRACK=RSS
<div><p>In concept, an image has both verticality and horizontal dimensions. Saturated images within this space have a horizon and can exceed that horizon. Within that horizon where the image dwells something chances itself upon the observer and the observed. Into that public space between self and other, students bring an instrumental approach to how they plan to deploy their new fund of knowledge, only to discover that the setting itself has become an event where surprise and upheaval disrupt their illusion of self-continuity and the façade of familiarity. Phenomenologically, upheaval shows itself when givenness both precedes and participates in the giving of phenomena such as medical students' "before and after" images of psychoanalysis. They discover and reconfigure their erstwhile absolute positions and values into reconfigurations of self and prior commitments. The turning point from their instrumental use of knowledge to reconfigurations of how they situate themselves in the world decisively comes when teaching and learning become an event in se that disturbs their sense of order.
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Following Husserl, phenomenological psychological observation has required us to go from the events of history to a sense of history. Would, however, that we could stay at the level of events much longer to see images explode and exceed their horizons from the illusion of order, and patterned repetition disrupted by surprise, upheaval and indeterminacy in the spirit of Alain Badiou!</p></div>Sat, 01 Oct 2016 00:00:00 GMThttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1-2/EJC196495?TRACK=RSSMaurice Apprey2016-10-01T00:00:00ZEvidence and/or experience-based knowledge in lifestyle treatment of patients diagnosed as obese?http://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1-2/EJC196496?TRACK=RSS
<div><p>Proceeding from a phenomenological perspective, this study investigates how physiotherapists' experience-based knowledge acquires significance in their encounters with patients diagnosed as obese. Presenting the thematic accounts of three physiotherapists, this paper illuminates how they make use of experiences from both their own life as well as experiences from learning and doing physiotherapy. This multifaceted experience-based knowledge is significant for making individual adjustments in a group-based programme. In line with these findings, the authors question whether the therapeutic method itself can be given such a prime position in defining best evidence in evidence-based practice. In concluding, they call for a re-consideration of the term evidence. More precisely, it is argued that what will be "effective" therapy for a person diagnosed as obese cannot be reduced to external evidence.</p></div>Sat, 01 Oct 2016 00:00:00 GMThttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1-2/EJC196496?TRACK=RSSKaren Synne Groven and Kristin Heggen2016-10-01T00:00:00ZNietzsche Contra God : a battle withinhttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1-2/EJC196497?TRACK=RSS
<div><p>Nietzsche's name has become almost synonymous with militant atheism. Born into a pious Christian family, this son of a Lutheran pastor declared himself the Antichrist. But could this have been yet another of his masks of hardness? Nietzsche rarely revealed his innermost self in the published writings, and this can be gleaned mainly from his private letters and the accounts of friends. These sources bring to light the philosopher's inner struggle with his own, deeply religious nature.
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Losing his father at a young age was a calamity from which Nietzsche never recovered, and I argue that his famous thought-image "God is dead" was a transfiguration of the painful memory of this loss. In this essay, I trace Nietzsche's tortuous path from an ardent devotee of God to a vociferous critic of Christianity, a path that was punctuated with veiled longings for a loving deity. Deep in his heart, he remained faithful to Christian ideals. Rather like Cordelia, the only truly loving daughter of King Lear, Nietzsche refused to utter words of intense affection and reverence, as these had been blatantly devalued and corrupted. Instead, he adopted a mask of awrongdoer and a blasphemer who took not the punishment but the guilt.
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Nietzsche's attitude to religion is discussed from the perspective of his life, his personality, and his mental condition. The discussion draws on psychoanalytical concepts of Freud, Erikson, Winnicott and Kohut. This is not an exclusive reading, but complementary to other studies in this field.</p></div>Sat, 01 Oct 2016 00:00:00 GMThttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1-2/EJC196497?TRACK=RSSEva Cybulska2016-10-01T00:00:00ZExploring the salience of intergenerational trauma among children and grandchildren of victims of apartheid-era gross human rights violationshttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1-2/EJC196498?TRACK=RSS
<div><p>Apartheid, as a systemised and institutionalised process of race-based discrimination, exploitation and oppression, left in its wake a deeply traumatised society. Many feel that this collective trauma has not been sufficiently addressed and that this has rendered the peace achieved after Apartheid's demise increasingly fragile. In addition to this, we are reminded that traumatic memories affect not only those who have personally experienced conflict and violence, but also future generations through what is known as intergenerational transmission of trauma. This paper explores the salience of intergenerational trauma in South Africa. At a conceptual level, it is framed by the life course perspective and historical trauma theory. Methodologically, a hermeneutic phenomenological approach was utilised. Qualitative interviews were conducted with 20 children and grandchildren (females = 10, males = 10) of victims of Apartheid-era gross human rights violations. The interview data was subjected to an interpretative analytical process that yielded a number of themes which provide support for the salience of intergenerational trauma amongst descendants of victims of Apartheid-era gross human rights violations. These themes - secondary traumatisation, socioeconomic and material impact, and sense of powerlessness and helplessness - are discussed along with their possible implications, and foci for further research pointed to.</p></div>Sat, 01 Oct 2016 00:00:00 GMThttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1-2/EJC196498?TRACK=RSSCyril Kenneth Adonis2016-10-01T00:00:00ZThe community of solitudehttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1-2/EJC196499?TRACK=RSS
<div><p>This paper re-examines the egos of Edmund Husserl and Max Scheler with reference to Friedrich Nietzsche and the psychologist, James Hillman, and in the process also confronts the ego in other of its many manifestations, misappropriations, and mystifications.
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The ego is a multi-headed enigma which defies phenomenological description, and only reaches the status of concept by virtue of the gropings of an epistemology which is not up to the task. The goal of this paper is twofold: firstly, to come to terms with what is commonly spoken of as ego, and secondly, to devise a scheme which does justice to it as phenomenon.</p></div>Sat, 01 Oct 2016 00:00:00 GMThttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1-2/EJC196499?TRACK=RSSChristopher Pulte2016-10-01T00:00:00ZInvestigating the experiences of special school visual arts teachers : an illustration of phenomenological methods and analysishttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1-2/EJC196500?TRACK=RSS
<div><p>This paper reports on a recent hermeneutic phenomenological study aimed at understanding the experiences of special school teachers in Hong Kong, and specifically visual arts teachers tasked with teaching students with intellectual disabilities. Illustrating the use of a phenomenological research method, the paper outlines the methodology and procedure followed in respect of determining the source of data, conducting phenomenological interviews, and formulating themes. The themes that emerged from the interviews were examined in conjunction with the stories told by the teachers. The special school visual arts teachers who participated in this study have strong emotional and personal connections with their students. In relation to performing their teaching role, the teachers had experienced problems of various kinds, with many of these problems unique to the special school settings. In an effort to tackle these problems and improve their teaching, these teachers engaged in reflection and explored a variety of ways to enhance their students' learning. Despite the practical learning problems their students experience, the teachers maintained that studying visual arts is beneficial to their students' whole-person development. The paper concludes with a critical reflection on the nature of teaching visual arts to students with intellectual disabilities.</p></div>Sat, 01 Oct 2016 00:00:00 GMThttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1-2/EJC196500?TRACK=RSSCheung On Tam2016-10-01T00:00:00ZPsychotherapy for the Other : Levinas and the Face-to-Face Relationship, Kevin C. Krycka, George Kunz, & George G. Sayre (Eds.) : book reviewhttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1-2/EJC196501?TRACK=RSS
<div><p>Let me begin this review by introducing myself, the reader. I am a psychotherapist in private practice, based in Cape Town, South Africa. My therapeutic practice includes individual work with adolescents and adults, as well as couples and family work. As a psychotherapist, I have walked a winding road in terms of my theoretical loyalties. When I began my work as a young psychotherapist, I was strongly grounded in relational psychoanalytic theory, having come through a clinical training programme which inspired me to listen to, and speak with, the relational psychotherapist's voice. I had come through three post-graduate degrees, the first two of which were essentially phenomenological hermeneuticin orientation, while the third was grounded in the intersubjective and self-psychological thinkers.</p></div>Sat, 01 Oct 2016 00:00:00 GMThttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1-2/EJC196501?TRACK=RSSBruce C. Bradfield2016-10-01T00:00:00ZEditorialhttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1-2/EJC196502?TRACK=RSS
<div><p>Three thought-provoking articles I recently came across comment on the way in which the changing nature of academic publishing and bibliographic data bases has impacted on the traditional structure and content of editorials. Traditionally, the editorial in a scholarly journal has been aimed at introducing, and in the process reflecting on, the papers included in the edition for which it is intended, relating the thrust of these to the broader discipline and debate in the field. This type of editorial purportedly remains popular with publishers, given their eye on the impact factor, in that, according to Galbén-Rodriguez and Arencibia-Jorge (2014), "the editorial content attracts considerable attention from readers and authors - potential citers. This is partly due to the readability and ease with which busy authors can 'catch' the main points" (p. 34) of the papers presented in gist, commented on and contextualised by the journal editor.</p></div>Sat, 01 Oct 2016 00:00:00 GMThttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1-2/EJC196502?TRACK=RSSChristopher R. Stones2016-10-01T00:00:00ZClinical implications of a phenomenological study : being regarded as a threat while attempting to do one's besthttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/03/EJC187683?TRACK=RSS
<div><p>Cultural messages promote putting forward one's best effort, and yet any level of success, or the effort itself, can lead to being regarded as a threat. People forming everyday social comparisons may feel threatened by those attempting to do their best, and may react to neutralize the perceived threat. The urge to undermine someone regarded as a threat can result in direct reprisal, social strain, or other repercussions that can range from unpleasantness to life-changing trauma. Given the potential for negative outcomes, the experience of being regarded as a threat while attempting to do one's best merits close examination.</p></div>Tue, 01 Mar 2016 00:00:00 GMThttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/03/EJC187683?TRACK=RSSNorma Cole2016-03-01T00:00:00ZAn existential-phenomenological investigation of the experience of being accepted in individuals who have undergone psychiatric institutionalizationhttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/03/EJC187684?TRACK=RSS
<div><p>This study represents an existential-phenomenological investigation of the experience of being accepted in individuals who have undergone psychiatric institutionalization. Written protocols of narrative accounts were collected from nine individuals drawn from a partial hospitalization programme, with the analysis of these narratives revealing seven basic constituents of the focal experience. The paper concludes with a discussion of the clinical implications of these findings for understanding this experience as it relates to psychotherapy with individuals who experience severe mental illness symptoms and/or stigma.</p></div>Tue, 01 Mar 2016 00:00:00 GMThttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/03/EJC187684?TRACK=RSSJessica S. Winn2016-03-01T00:00:00ZAn existential-phenomenological investigation of women's experience of becoming less obsessed with their bodily appearancehttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/03/EJC187685?TRACK=RSS
<div><p>This study investigated women's lived experience of becoming less obsessed with their bodily appearance. Written narrative accounts were collected from seven women co-participants and a phenomenological analysis of these descriptive protocols was then performed in order to reveal the prereflective structure of the focal phenomenon, seven essential constituents of which emerged. A major goal of this research was to contribute to the undernourished area of phenomenological research regarding the experience of body image.</p></div>Tue, 01 Mar 2016 00:00:00 GMThttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/03/EJC187685?TRACK=RSSJennifer K. Kirby2016-03-01T00:00:00ZLiving the divine divide : a phenomenological study of Mormon mothers who are career-professional womenhttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/03/EJC187686?TRACK=RSS
<div><p>The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints - the Mormon Church - upholds a cultural expectation for women of their community to remain unemployed outside the home and to dedicate their early adulthood to bearing and raising children. This paper reports on a phenomenological exploration, using Smith and Osborn's (2008) model of interpretative phenomenological analysis, of the use, as a conflict-controlling strategy, of sanctification, or the sacred aspects of life, in the religious cultural navigation of 16 religious Mormon women who maintain full-time professional careers in the fields of law, medicine, education, science, administration or engineering, and who simultaneously mother one or more children under the age of 12. The findings of this study document significant demographic, values-based and experiential differences between the study participants and their Latter-day Saints (LDS) peers who live within the subculture's norm.</p></div>Tue, 01 Mar 2016 00:00:00 GMThttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/03/EJC187686?TRACK=RSSCurtis G. G. Greenfield, Pauline Lytle and F. Myron Hays2016-03-01T00:00:00ZA phenomenology of marijuana use among graduate studentshttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/03/EJC187687?TRACK=RSS
<div><p>Guided by a hermeneutic-phenomenological methodology, this study focused on gaining an in-depth understanding of the use of marijuana by graduate students, a population which does not fit the usual profile of marijuana users addressed in the field literature, by exploring the experience of being a graduate student who uses marijuana. Semi-structured individual interviews were conducted with seven marijuana users attending a graduate programme of study, with elaboration and clarification of their initial description of their respective experiences dialogically prompted by means of open-ended questions. Five interrelated themes emerged from the analysis of the transcribed interviews, with the central finding indicating that the experience of being a graduate student who uses marijuana involves a process of ongoing negotiation between, on the one hand, messages from society and academia, and, on the other, an inner sense of self and well-being.</p></div>Tue, 01 Mar 2016 00:00:00 GMThttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/03/EJC187687?TRACK=RSSEmily Garner2016-03-01T00:00:00ZA phenomenological investigation of women's experience of recovering from childhood trauma and subsequent substance abusehttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/03/EJC187688?TRACK=RSS
<div><p>Proceeding from a phenomenological perspective, the present study investigated the experiences of seven homeless women who had lived through childhood trauma and subsequent substance abuse, with specific focus on the recovery process experienced by each. Applying the analytical protocol of Giorgi (1985) to the written accounts obtained from the participants, 15 constituent themes of the recovery process were identified. In order to illuminate the participants' experiences with minimal influence of any possible researcher bias, the researcher refrained from labelling, judging or diagnosing the women's life circumstances. Consequently, no treatment paradigm was applied to help explain, predict or judge the behaviour of the participants during the course of this research.</p></div>Tue, 01 Mar 2016 00:00:00 GMThttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/03/EJC187688?TRACK=RSSAyesha Christina Hunter2016-03-01T00:00:00ZAn existential-phenomenological investigation of the experience of gay men acknowledging to themselves that they are attracted to other menhttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/03/EJC187689?TRACK=RSS
<div><p>There are an abundance of studies regarding the development of sexual identity and sexual orientation that have served as the foundational underpinnings for exploring sexual orientation development. To date, however, findings from these studies have failed to constitute a significant resource for understanding the gay man's experience of acknowledging to himself that he is attracted to other men. By identifying the essential constituents of this experience, this existential-phenomenological study provides a starting point for further exploration. Written narrative accounts were obtained from seven men who identified sexually as gay and a method of existential-phenomenological analysis was applied to reveal the prereflective constituents of the experience described. The analysis yielded a new perspective on the experience of gay men and their attraction to other men that has the capacity to change the way practising clinicians, educators, counsellors and future researchers treat and understand the Queer community.</p></div>Tue, 01 Mar 2016 00:00:00 GMThttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/03/EJC187689?TRACK=RSSAndrew Joseph Leone2016-03-01T00:00:00ZThe second-chance self : transformation as the gift of life for maternal caregivers of transplant childrenhttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/03/EJC187690?TRACK=RSS
<div><p>This paper examines the phenomenon of transformational growth in maternal caregivers of children who have undergone a kidney transplant. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with seven mothers of transplant children who shared narrative accounts of their lived experience. Through a phenomenological analysis of the interview data, the fundamental structure of positive growth in caregivers of transplant children was illuminated, revealing both themes of unresolved suffering and trauma and themes of posttraumatic growth and transformation.</p></div>Tue, 01 Mar 2016 00:00:00 GMThttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/03/EJC187690?TRACK=RSSCynthia L. Grace2016-03-01T00:00:00ZEditorialhttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/03/EJC187691?TRACK=RSS
<div><p>The broad thematic focus of this Special Edition on contemporary phenomenological research in the field of psychotherapy more specifically encompasses eight recent studies that examine potentially impactful human experiences of special clinical relevance. Collectively, the diverse issues explored invariably touch the core of our humanness and are, therefore, both essential to explore and yet often difficult to face, especially in a psychotherapeutic setting. More specifically, the human experiences addressed in the studies reported on in this edition include loss and grieving, self-empowerment, body image dissatisfaction, substance abuse, trauma and victimization, interrole conflict, homelessness and other clinically significant complications of co-existing disorders, psychiatric institutionalization and self-acceptance, and sexual orientation formation.</p></div>Tue, 01 Mar 2016 00:00:00 GMThttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/03/EJC187691?TRACK=RSSRon Valle and Cynthia L. Grace2016-03-01T00:00:00ZClinical implications of a phenomenological study : being regarded as a threat while attempting to do one's besthttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1/EJC187683?TRACK=RSS
<div><p>Cultural messages promote putting forward one's best effort, and yet any level of success, or the effort itself, can lead to being regarded as a threat. People forming everyday social comparisons may feel threatened by those attempting to do their best, and may react to neutralize the perceived threat. The urge to undermine someone regarded as a threat can result in direct reprisal, social strain, or other repercussions that can range from unpleasantness to life-changing trauma. Given the potential for negative outcomes, the experience of being regarded as a threat while attempting to do one's best merits close examination.</p></div>Tue, 01 Mar 2016 00:00:00 GMThttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1/EJC187683?TRACK=RSSNorma Cole2016-03-01T00:00:00ZAn existential-phenomenological investigation of the experience of being accepted in individuals who have undergone psychiatric institutionalizationhttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1/EJC187684?TRACK=RSS
<div><p>This study represents an existential-phenomenological investigation of the experience of being accepted in individuals who have undergone psychiatric institutionalization. Written protocols of narrative accounts were collected from nine individuals drawn from a partial hospitalization programme, with the analysis of these narratives revealing seven basic constituents of the focal experience. The paper concludes with a discussion of the clinical implications of these findings for understanding this experience as it relates to psychotherapy with individuals who experience severe mental illness symptoms and/or stigma.</p></div>Tue, 01 Mar 2016 00:00:00 GMThttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1/EJC187684?TRACK=RSSJessica S. Winn2016-03-01T00:00:00ZAn existential-phenomenological investigation of women's experience of becoming less obsessed with their bodily appearancehttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1/EJC187685?TRACK=RSS
<div><p>This study investigated women's lived experience of becoming less obsessed with their bodily appearance. Written narrative accounts were collected from seven women co-participants and a phenomenological analysis of these descriptive protocols was then performed in order to reveal the prereflective structure of the focal phenomenon, seven essential constituents of which emerged. A major goal of this research was to contribute to the undernourished area of phenomenological research regarding the experience of body image.</p></div>Tue, 01 Mar 2016 00:00:00 GMThttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1/EJC187685?TRACK=RSSJennifer K. Kirby2016-03-01T00:00:00ZLiving the divine divide : a phenomenological study of Mormon mothers who are career-professional womenhttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1/EJC187686?TRACK=RSS
<div><p>The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints - the Mormon Church - upholds a cultural expectation for women of their community to remain unemployed outside the home and to dedicate their early adulthood to bearing and raising children. This paper reports on a phenomenological exploration, using Smith and Osborn's (2008) model of interpretative phenomenological analysis, of the use, as a conflict-controlling strategy, of sanctification, or the sacred aspects of life, in the religious cultural navigation of 16 religious Mormon women who maintain full-time professional careers in the fields of law, medicine, education, science, administration or engineering, and who simultaneously mother one or more children under the age of 12. The findings of this study document significant demographic, values-based and experiential differences between the study participants and their Latter-day Saints (LDS) peers who live within the subculture's norm.</p></div>Tue, 01 Mar 2016 00:00:00 GMThttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1/EJC187686?TRACK=RSSCurtis G. G. Greenfield, Pauline Lytle and F. Myron Hays2016-03-01T00:00:00ZA phenomenology of marijuana use among graduate studentshttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1/EJC187687?TRACK=RSS
<div><p>Guided by a hermeneutic-phenomenological methodology, this study focused on gaining an in-depth understanding of the use of marijuana by graduate students, a population which does not fit the usual profile of marijuana users addressed in the field literature, by exploring the experience of being a graduate student who uses marijuana. Semi-structured individual interviews were conducted with seven marijuana users attending a graduate programme of study, with elaboration and clarification of their initial description of their respective experiences dialogically prompted by means of open-ended questions. Five interrelated themes emerged from the analysis of the transcribed interviews, with the central finding indicating that the experience of being a graduate student who uses marijuana involves a process of ongoing negotiation between, on the one hand, messages from society and academia, and, on the other, an inner sense of self and well-being.</p></div>Tue, 01 Mar 2016 00:00:00 GMThttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1/EJC187687?TRACK=RSSEmily Garner2016-03-01T00:00:00ZA phenomenological investigation of women's experience of recovering from childhood trauma and subsequent substance abusehttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1/EJC187688?TRACK=RSS
<div><p>Proceeding from a phenomenological perspective, the present study investigated the experiences of seven homeless women who had lived through childhood trauma and subsequent substance abuse, with specific focus on the recovery process experienced by each. Applying the analytical protocol of Giorgi (1985) to the written accounts obtained from the participants, 15 constituent themes of the recovery process were identified. In order to illuminate the participants' experiences with minimal influence of any possible researcher bias, the researcher refrained from labelling, judging or diagnosing the women's life circumstances. Consequently, no treatment paradigm was applied to help explain, predict or judge the behaviour of the participants during the course of this research.</p></div>Tue, 01 Mar 2016 00:00:00 GMThttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1/EJC187688?TRACK=RSSAyesha Christina Hunter2016-03-01T00:00:00ZAn existential-phenomenological investigation of the experience of gay men acknowledging to themselves that they are attracted to other menhttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1/EJC187689?TRACK=RSS
<div><p>There are an abundance of studies regarding the development of sexual identity and sexual orientation that have served as the foundational underpinnings for exploring sexual orientation development. To date, however, findings from these studies have failed to constitute a significant resource for understanding the gay man's experience of acknowledging to himself that he is attracted to other men. By identifying the essential constituents of this experience, this existential-phenomenological study provides a starting point for further exploration. Written narrative accounts were obtained from seven men who identified sexually as gay and a method of existential-phenomenological analysis was applied to reveal the prereflective constituents of the experience described. The analysis yielded a new perspective on the experience of gay men and their attraction to other men that has the capacity to change the way practising clinicians, educators, counsellors and future researchers treat and understand the Queer community.</p></div>Tue, 01 Mar 2016 00:00:00 GMThttp://journals.co.za/content/ipjp/16/1/EJC187689?TRACK=RSSAndrew Joseph Leone2016-03-01T00:00:00Z